Trainer Greg Jackson: Success breeds criticism

Nobody needs to tell Greg Jackson where his team stands at the end of the year.

That’s a job the renowned trainer does almost every month. When you travel and fight as much as the Jackson-Winkeljohn MMA folks do, it’s easier to keep sanity measuring progress in 30-day chunks.

“Of course, I want to do better, but I don’t go back to every single little fight continuously and say, ‘We did this here, and we didn’t do this,'” Jackson told MMAjunkie.com (www.mmajunkie.com). “It’s more of an overall sense of it.”

This past week, the team’s performance was once again in the spotlight following the release of an infographic measuring the outcomes of major MMA teams within the UFC.

Seventy percent of Jackson’s MMA fighters went to decision in 2012, it stated. MMAjunkie.com later clarified with the infographic’s creator that the data was compiled from only 52 percent of the fights in 2012, despite it listing 31 events in 2012, which represents all but one event on the promotion’s calendar.

Nevertheless, the stat was easy fodder for critics of the camp, which have frequently included UFC President Dana White. The exec has taken aim at the team for promoting a “safety first” type of fighting that leads to decisions rather than finishes.

Jackson, in turn, has defended his camp, saying that fighting not to finish opponents “makes no logical sense.”

After an attack from White in late 2010, Jackson sat down to take stock and compiled a stat sheet listing the performance bonuses they had won that year. The data showed an impressive array of additional paydays earned for exciting performances.

Still, when it comes to Jackson-Winkeljohn MMA this past year, Jackson isn’t completely satisfied with his team’s showing. But that’s because he never is.

“I want to do better when we have stellar years,” he said. “There’s never a year when it’s like, ‘Man, we nailed it.’ Because I would be bored if we did.”

Jackson notes that because his fighters are competing at a higher level – dozens of them have fought or currently fight in the UFC – they’re also fighting tougher competition, and that means more potential for decisions.

Still, he said he’s always trying to evaluate what’s working and what isn’t when his students fight.

“You constantly have to be aware of, ‘Are we going through a slump? What do we need to do to reinvigorate ourselves? Are we getting too cocky? Are we getting complacent?'” he said. “It’s a constant process, and it takes place almost every month.”

But despite back-to-back World MMA Award wins for “Best Coach” and another nomination this year, the trainer by now is accustomed to attacks from pundits and fans who say he’s encouraging fighters to avoid a fight. He believes it started around the time of UFC 111, when critics questioned his advice to welterweight champion Georges St-Pierre not to pass challenger Dan Hardy’s guard.

Jackson said he was encouraging the champ to beat up Hardy from the position but that fans were still “mystified” and began calling his fighters boring.

Now, such gripes are commonplace.

“I think it’s been popular (to bash Jackson-Winkeljohn) for the past five years, and I think that comes with success,” he said. “I think if you have a lot of success, there are going to be people that don’t like what you do.

“People don’t have to agree with my decisions either, but they are not in my position. They don’t have to deal with things I deal with. They can disagree with what I say, but I believe in our team.”

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